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When buying heirloom seeds I feel like a kid in a candy store!  I always get soooo excited when new heirloom seed catalogs begin to arrive.  They are like 8 1/2 x 11 glimpses of spring.  So when it’s a whopping 10ºF outside, what’s my favorite thing to do?  Cuddle up next to my wood cookstove with a cup of tea and dream about being in the garden, elbows deep in warm soil, and create my list from my favorite heirloom seed catalogs.

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WHAT ARE HEIRLOOM SEEDS?

Heirloom seeds are old varieties of seed that are open-pollinated and have not been altered from it’s parent plant.  Seeds that have been passed down through the generations from family to family. 

These seeds are open-pollinated, meaning that the flower of the plant is pollinated naturally by bee’s, insects, and even the wind.  The resulting seed will reproduce a plant with the same characteristics as its parent.

WHY CHOOSE HEIRLOOM VARIETIES?

Heirloom seed creates plants that are packed with high nutrient content & intense flavor!  Hybrid seed is created by cross-pollinating two varieties of plants usually for a specific trait such as higher fruit production.  This higher fruit production can decrease the nutritional value of the product.

Heirloom seed creates plants that are packed with high nutrient content & intense flavor!Click To Tweet

An heirloom seed packet is typically a bit more reasonable in cost!  Add to that fact that you can save the seed year-to-year, turns your one-time investment into virtually free food.  Who doesn’t like free?

Diversity!  Planting a diverse crop enhances your food options (oh, the varieties!), offers diverse color, taste, shape, and product.  It’s believed that by planting heirlooms, it promotes bio-diversity, a win-win for the eco-system!

Ecosystem diversity creates what foodies call “terroir” the food grown where you live is unlike food grown anywhere else.

– Southern Exposure Seed Exchange

Staggered ripening!  Heirlooms are not bred to ripen all at the same time as most hybrid options do.  I find this advantageous when canning season begins as I can stagger my canning times as well.

WHERE TO FIND HEIRLOOM VARIETIES

As with most gardener’s, I have my favorite for finding new varieties.  Listed in no particular order below are my top sources.  Be sure to visit their sites, order a catalog and immerse yourself in the growing world of heirlooms.

True Leaf Market (trueleafmarket.com)

A company based out of Salt Lake City, Utah, offering a wide variety of heirloom and organic seed choices, growing kits, fermentation kits and gardening supplies.

Bakers Creek Heirloom Seeds (rareseeds.com)

A company from the Missouri Ozarks that carries one of the largest collections of heirloom seeds from the 19th century.  I love that this company stays true to their goals & continue to give back in huge ways.

It is their goal to educate everyone about a better, safer food supply

– Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Annie’s Heirloom Seeds  (anniesheirloomseeds.com)

Based in Michigan.  I love that they offer only Heirloom & Organic varieties of vegetables, herbs, and flowers as well as garden supplies. 

Fedco Seeds & Supplies (fedcoseeds.com)

A Maine based cooperative that offers a large selection of cold-hardy selections.  Fedco has 5 divisions:

1. Seeds   This division is just that.  Seeds of all varieties including heirlooms & organic.
2. Potatoes, Onions & Exotics    A large variety of organic potatoes & onions as well as ginger and turmeric roots!
3. Organic Growers Supply   Offering a large array of gardening supplies, kits & gardening books.
4. Trees   Offers hardy tree rootstock, fruit options & more.
5. Bulbs   From flowering bulbs to edible bulbs they offer it.  Great selections of hardy garlic bulbs.

Johnny’s Selected Seeds (johnnyseeds.com)

Another Maine based company that offers a wide variety including heirloom & organic varieties as well as gardening supplies.  I love their organic onion plant options.

Mary’s Heirloom Seeds (marysheirloomseeds.com)

Founded in 2011, Mary’s Heirloom Seeds, a small self proclaimed “mom and pop” shop, was created with the intent of assisting people to become more self-reliant & self-sufficient. Their commitment to the “shopping small movement is what draws IMSL to them year after year.

Botanical Interests (botanicalinterests.com)

A Colorado based company with over 600 varieties for the home gardener including heirlooms, organics, and open-pollinated flowers.

Seed Savers Exchange Heirloom Seeds (seedsavers.org)

A non-profit organization based in Iowa since 1975 that offers non-gmo, heirloom & organic varieties of seeds.  

Our mission is to conserve and promote America’s culturally diverse but endangered garden and food crop heritage for future generations by collecting, growing, and sharing heirloom seeds and plants.

– Seed Savers Exchange

High Mowing Organic Seeds (highmowingseeds.com)

Another New England based company out of Wolcott, Vermont whose pledge is 

100% certified organic seed, 100% of the time

– High Mowing Organic Seeds

They offer organic & heirloom vegetable, flower, herb, & cover crops as well as gardening supplies & apparel.

Territorial Seed Company (territorialseed.com)

An Oregon based company whose mission in part

is to improve people’s self-sufficiency and independence by enabling gardeners to produce an abundance of good tasting, fresh from the garden food

– Territorial Seed Company

Offering heirlooms, organics & open-pollinated seeds.  They pledge no GMO seeds and sell only untreated seed product.

These are my go-to trusted suppliers for heirloom seeds.  I have been growing only organic & heirloom seeds for the past 14 years and have had great success in growing, preserving and saving the seed from these sources.  As education increases in the importance of where we source our seeds and how we grow our food, I hope you too will give these seeds a try.

Do you have other sources you love and trust?  Please share below so I can give them a try as well!  Be sure to subscribe to IMSL’s “Happenings On The Hill” monthly newsletter to stay up-to-date with gardening, recipes & more!

Happy Growing!

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